Kuwait oil strike called off, production increases and the price of Brent Crude tumbles

Kuwaiti oil workers staged a three-day strike which saw production fall by at least 60 per cent (Source: Getty)

Jake Cordell

Well, that was short-lived.

After yesterday’s optimism, the markets have settled back into something a little more familiar - sell-offs - after the Kuwait strike ended and the price of oil slid back from yesterday’s close of nearly $44 (£31) a barrel.

After a three-day general strike, the trade unions called off the action and said it was going “to make every effort to immediately return production to its previous level”. The strike had wiped out around 60 per cent of Kuwait’s 2.8 million barrels a day production.

In honour of his highness the Emir ... we have decided the following. First, the cancellation of the general strike and the attendance of all oil sector workers at their places of work beginning at seven in the morning on Wednesday 20 April 2016.

The Kuwait government had refused to negotiate with the striking workers, who feared cheaper oil would result in job losses or pay cuts.

Brent Crude slipped down 2.57 per cent to $42.90 a barrel on Wednesday morning, but is still fluttering around monthly highs.